Help with 11 yr.old Who Has Adhd?bipolar

Updated on October 23, 2006
A.H. asks from La Vergne, TN
6 answers

I have an 11 yr. old who has been diagnosed with ADHD & Bipolar, he is on 3 types of medications for his disorders. But we are having problems with him wetting the beds at night, i mean almost every night and even if he takes naps on the weekends during the day he has problems, we also have issues with him at least once a week with not being able to stay awake in school. The principal recently had to take him to the gym first thing one morning and make him run laps just to get him to wake up. Does anyone have answrs to me on things i can do to help him from wetting the bed as he is 11 and this is a very embarrasing thing for him. The sleeping part is a bit of a problem as well....

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C.B.

answers from Atlanta on

You might want to request information from a company called Pacific International. Their website is www.stopwetting.com. They talk about the reasons behind everything you mention with your son. I have worked with them on a bedwetting problem with my 8 year old daughter, and the things they talk about make so much sense.

I also ran across another company just now on the internet, but it sounds like they do the same type of treatment if you want to compare the two. The other company is www.nobedwetting.com.

Good luck!!!

C.

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S.K.

answers from Chattanooga on

I no I have discussed this issue before with other mothers. First, you stated you where a single mother. I am sure this means dad is totally out of the picture or in and out of the picture. Secondly, bipolar is almost impossible to diagnosis until someone is in their twenties or thirties because an accurate diagnoisis can only be done after a true pattern of behavior can be established. This takes decades. I have a bipolar spouse and know alot about the condition. Bipolar is extended periods of depression followed by extended periods of manic behavior. These actions happen over days or months not moment to moment. A big myth about bipolar disorder. Secondly, what concerns me is the growing number of "professionals" diagnoising this behavior. Go to a doctor who specializes in mental illness only to get an accurate diagnoisis. Next, ADHD can only truly be diagonised by a brain scan. Has this yet been done? It scares me to see "School Professionals" are making these kinds of diagnosis. So until the child has been throughly evaluated by probally a few different doctors be careful at the decisions you make. As I have said to another mother. Look into post tramatic stress disorder. Bed wetting is at the top of the list. Post tramatic stress disorder can show up in children after any tramatic epidsode "like divorce or separation". You may be treating the wrong condition all together. Hopefully your child is also in therapy.

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J.M.

answers from Memphis on

Hi, I believe the bed wetting may be a side effect of the medication. (His sleep problem at school could be too.) If you are open to herbs and natural healing, I buy from the herbalhealer.com website. I think the membership fee is $25.00 per year. There is information and products for ADHD and Bipolar. Also, www.caer.com is a wonderful website by a psychologist named Lawrence Weathers on ADHD, etc. He has written a book called ADHD: A Path to Success which is on his website. J. M.

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L.W.

answers from Atlanta on

I would return to the psychiatrist who prescribed these meds - it WAS a psychiatrist, right? Not a pediatrician, right? (Psychiatrists are the only ones who truly understand the ins and outs of these meds....)In fact, I'd be sure to take him to a psychiatrist who specializes in working with children.... re-evaluate the meds... These meds are negatively impacting his social and physical functioning! What good does it do to give children meds if it's going to disrupt their ability to function in life? And in addition, please consider looking into alternative ways of working with the ADHD to help balance him out.... I'm very concerned, as children's counselor, with how children are put on these heavy-duty meds so readily in our society. I can provide further guidance privately if you wish to contact me directly. There are things you can do to help your son.... Begin by being sure to let him know the meds are having this affect on him....Not laziness....Bladder control is also often a result of a rapidly growing body and a bladder that hasn't caught up yet. Try to make light and be matter of fact about it and just have him help you strip the bed and wash the sheets and remake it and be sure he isn't made to feel ashamed.... Good luck to you!

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K.M.

answers from Knoxville on

My 11 y/o daughter also has ADHD and some other developmental disabilities. She also still wets the bed and we buy the night time pullups and have for years. She also has difficulty going to sleep at night. She currently takes Focalin XR for her ADHD and at night, she is on Trazadone. This is an antidepressant, but it definitely helps her go to sleep. We went from getting up several times a night for the first three hours from bed time, to only an occasional sleepless night. She doesn't have a hard time staying awake in school, however, this IS a side effect of ADHD meds that could be too strong. They might just need to be adjusted a little. I hope this helps some. Good Luck, Kristen

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S.M.

answers from Nashville on

Hi A.. Sorry to hear about the problems your son is having. I recommended this to another mom on here a few days ago with a questions about ADHD meds. My son was just diagnosed with sleep apnea (he's only 14 months old though.) But I've done lots of research on sleep apnea and have read a lot about how kids are often diagnosed with ADHD when the real problem is that they have sleep apnea. With sleep apnea, kids never get into that heavy REM sleep at night and are tired during the day - which sounds like your son. You may want to take him to a Ear, Nose, Throat specialist to see if he has enlarged tonsils or adenoids that could be causing apnea. I'm not sure where the bedwetting issue would fall into that, but it's just something to consider. Good luck.

I just found some articles you might be interested in reading. One of them says that a symptom of sleep apnea is wetting the bed.

http://www.aafp.org/afp/20040301/1159ph.html
http://www.drgreene.com/21_621.html

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